The following data were presented at the American College of Cardidology meeting in Chicago.

• Amgen Inc., of Thousand Oaks, Calif., presented data from a Phase Ib trial showing that AMG 145 reduced LDL-C levels by up to 81 percent vs. placebo (p < 0.001) in patients with high cholesterol who were taking low to moderate doses of statins. The effects were similar in patients on high-dose statins. No serious adverse events were reported. AMG 145 is an antibody that inhibits PCSK9; Phase II trials are ongoing.

• ARCA Biopharma Inc., of Broomfield, Colo., said results of analyses of atrial fibrillation (AF) data from the previously completed Phase III BEST trial testing Gencaro (bucindolol hydrochloride) in 2,708 heart failure patients found that patients who developed new onset AF during the BEST trial had higher baseline plasma norepinephrine (NE) levels than patients who did not develop AF. Researchers said they believe increasing plasma NE levels as a measure of adrenergic activity herald worsening of heart failure symptoms in patients with reduced left ventricular ejection fractions. Analyses showed that NE levels at three months decreased in the Gencaro subgroups, compared to placebo subgroups, and researchers said that sympatholytic effect likely contributed to an associated 41 percent reduction in the risk of developing AF for the 1,202 Gencaro patient cohort without AF at baseline. ARCA received a complete response letter in 2009 based on results from the BEST trial. In 2010, the firm started another pivotal study under a special protocol assessment agreement with the FDA to test the beta-blocker in heart failure patients who have the beta-1 389 Arg/Arg genotype. (See BioWorld Today, June 2, 2009, and May 18, 2010.)

• AstraZeneca plc, of London, said results from a subanalysis of the PLATO genetic substudy were consistent with the overall outcome of the study, comparing Brilinta (ticagrelor) to Plavix (clopidogrel, Sanofi SA and Bristol-Myers Squibb Co.), even after poor clopidogrel metabolizers were excluded. AstraZeneca presented additional subanalysis data from the PLATO study suggesting that Brilinta tablets result in a reduction in hazard for time to first events, recurrent cardiovascular and ischemic events, when compared to clopidogrel.

• Esperion Therapeutics Inc., of Plymouth, Mich., presented data from a randomized, double-blind Phase II trial in 177 dyslipidemic patients showing that ETC-1002 was well tolerated and decreased LDL-C levels up to 27 percent after two weeks of treatment. The LDL-C reduction was sustained over the remaining 10 weeks of the study, and other biomarkers including Apo B, LDL-P (NMR) and nonHDL-C were significantly decreased. ETC-1002 is a small-molecule activator of AMP kinase.

• Janssen Research & Development LLC, a unit of New Brunswick, N.J.-based Johnson & Johnson, reported results from the EINSTEIN-PE study showing that oral anticoagulant Xarelto (rivaroxaban) was comparable to today's standard of care in treating patients with acute symptomatic pulmonary embolism and in preventing development of a secondary venous blood clot. Those data also were published in the New England Journal of Medicine.

• Merck & Co. Inc., of Whitehouse Station, N.J., reported Phase III data from the TRA-2P study showing that the addition of vorapaxar, an antithrombotic candidate, to standard of care (e.g. aspirin or thienopyridine, or both) resulted in a significantly greater reduction in the risk of the composite of cardiovascular death, heart attack, stroke or urgent coronary revascularization. There also was a significant increase in bleeding, including intracranial hemorrhage (ICH), among patients taking vorapaxan in addition to standard of care, although the risk of ICH was lower in patients without a history of stroke.

• Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc., of Tarrytown, N.Y., and partner Sanofi SA, of Paris, presented Phase II data showing that treatment with SAR236553/REGN727, a high-affinity, subcutaneously administered fully human antibody targeting PCSK9 (proprotein convertase subtilisin/kexin Type 9), over eight to 12 weeks significantly reduced mean LDL-C by 40 percent to 72 percent in patients with elevated LDL-C on stable dose of statins. By comparison, patients in the placebo group showed a mean LDL-C reduction of 5 percent (p < 0.0001). The dose-finding study enrolled 183 patients.

• Theravalues Corp., of Tokyo, presented clinical data showing that Theracurmin improved symptoms of left ventricular diastolic failure. Theracurmin is an absorption-enhanced form of turmeric-derivative curcumin.